Only time will tell.

As noted by a previous blogger, I also found this blog to be the most challenging.  Having a set goal and obtaining my ‘dream job’ might be a stretch this early in my life.  I don’t even know what I truly want out of my career in aviation just yet.  This fact can also be highlighted by the numerous guest speakers that we have had the opportunity to listen to over the past semester.  Many of them might tell you that where they are in their career wasn’t considered an option when they were first starting out.

As I see it (right now) I would ultimately like to end up flying.  Whether that is flying for an airline or part 135 I haven’t the slightest idea yet.  However, one thing that I would like to experience is the ATOP program discussed by Mr. Wayne Phillips during a class presentation.  I feel this would give me a great insight into the airlines as well as establishing networking opportunities.  If I were to pursue a career flying in the Airlines I know that there will be many…..many days ahead of me before I have the experience currently required by the airline industry.  Finding a specific airline that I would look to work for is truly impossible at this point.  Flying for Delta seems like a great idea now, but will they be hiring in 10 years, so many things will change between now and then.   Who might be hiring when I might have a competitive amount of hours will play a key role in finding my ‘dream job’, because at the end of the day I feel that my dream job will be any flying that I am involved in.  I feel that flying will play an important role in the future.  However, 40 years from now, we maybe in an entirely different environment with developing nations competing for the resources that are already stretched thin.  This can be seen with many airlines merging, filing for bankruptcy or at the mercy of a weak economy over the past few years the main thing I try to be is flexible and willing to adapt as I try and establish myself in aviation. 

I will also have to consider things involving my personal life.  Making considerations for family and friends might dictate whether or not I would be willing to move out of the country to look for work furthering my career.  As of today, I see myself trying to find a job flying, and the saying, “Will fly for food.” keeps popping up in my head.  Trying to stay flexible and willing to try other positions that will put me in a better position to obtain experience that will put me ahead of the competition for a flight job is vital.

What's new Boeing?

I was looking through the blog of Jon Ostrower, the individual whose blog I had started following, and found several interesting updates and one involving the 787.  Boeing has a tentative settlement with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) case against the company.  The agreement involves an arrangement to build the 737MAX aircraft at the union plant in Renton, Washington.  If you recall the 787 was facing a potential production problem (shocking) when internal discussions of a second assembly plant being built in South Carolina to avoid labor laws in Washington.  This news, should limit potential delivery delays as Boeing tries to key up with the large orders it has for the 787.  It will also ensure that the final assembly of the 737MAX will take place in Washington as opposed to other sites that Boeing was exploring.

Hopefully this will allow Boeing to avoid any other problems it may encounter.

Mr. Roberto Gonzalez

When I was looking for people that are influential in aviation I stumbled upon Roberto Kobeh Gonzalez.  I had never heard the name before, even though he is the President of the ICAO council.  Mr. Gonzalez is from Mexico and he received his Engineering degree in Communication and Electronics from the National Polytechnic Institute of Mexico in 1965.  He also studied at the FAA Academy in Oklahoma and the National Productivity Centre of Mexico taking several management, planning, quality assurance and leadership courses.  He has had an impressive career that started in 1966 and led him to the head of ICAO in 2006.

The duties of the President of the Council is to oversee the governing body (36 nations) which is elected by the ICAO Assembly for three-year terms.  For a more detailed explanation of how ICAO functions please follow this link.  The ICAO headquarters are located in Montreal, Canada.

Mr. Gonzalez and the work that ICAO does is vital to the Aviation industry.  With many countries in dispute with the European Union’s emission plan that is set to take place on January 1^st, ICAO has been working with the numerous countries that have objected to this plan and trying to prevent a setback in jobs as well as financially to the aviation sector.  Mr. Gonzalez has previously worked on negotiations on international air transport agreements, as noted in his biography.  Hopefully he will help the nations opposed to this EU law arrive at an agreement with the EU that will not hinder the aviation industry.  Another reason that Mr. Gonzalez is helping the aviation industry was by his statements in his re-election speech just last year.  He is looking to further improve the safety, security, and the environmental sustainability of international civil aviation.  In the 2010 assembly the governments of ICAO nations agreed to cap greenhouse gas emissions from international aviation at 2020 levels, and to improve fuel efficiency by two percent annually to 2050 as cited from this article.

General Aviation in China

China has always had an extremely limited footprint in the general aviation sector for the vast size of the country.  With a limited amount of airports (less than 200) and highly restrictive airspace, there hasn’t been the opportunity for much of a general aviation sector in a country that has over one billion people in it.  However, over the years the Chinese economy has been catching up to the United States as the largest in the world.  Moving along with China’s economy is the general aviation sector as well.  An article written by the NBAA shows multiple companies, which include Cessna, Boeing, and many others, expanding their production in China.  This increase in production, along with the Chinese government relaxing airspace restrictions, has poised the country for a general aviation expansion.

With this endeavor into a more aviation friendly environment the potential collaboration and competition within the aviation sector is going to increase.  In the article cited above, the NBAA points to a purchase of a US piston manufacturer by a Chinese company.  Although the production will remain in Alabama the purchase has allowed for further funding for the development of diesel technology with aviation applications.  As the GA sector continues to expand there will undoubtedly come a time where the Chinese start moving toward their own production as they learn from more established practices.

Although China is moving into a place where general aviation might thrive, there is still a long way to go.  Putting an infrastructure into place that can handle this increased demand will take time and money.  As China starts down this path of expansion there are going to be many opportunities for both pilots and management in the aviation sector in China.  As the economy continues to expand and with the steps of the Chinese government, the potential for aviation related jobs in China is going to be promising.

Corporate Aviation

Looking on the web at corporate aviation position is tricky work.  If a company isn't hiring then it is much more difficult to figure out what minimums they will look for or how long you might be on the road.  Using a job search engine was extremely helpful tool in locating jobs that were available.  Many of the websites it directed me to had basic hiring minimums and where I could send a resume and little else.

Looking for a few of the pilot jobs on a few of the job search engines led me to positions for Caterpillar and Kroger.  I wasn't able to get much information outside of basic qualifications for hiring though.  One site that I did find a bit more information on was for a medical helicopter pilot for Air Evac Lifeteam.  As stated through their website.  Air Evac Lifeteam is looking for helicopter pilots to fly their Bell 206 and 407 models.  They offer a 7 on/7 off work schedule as well as numerous other benefits as listed in the job posting.  The job posting was similar to all other types of job postings with a little more information.  Most of the posting didn't project a large picture as far as salary, quality of life, or the type of equipment that would be flown.

Another interesting thing that I kept running across while looking for various corporate flight departments were aviation forums.  Many people were looking for basic insight for specific companies with various responses.  Some would tell the type of equipment being flown, while others would answer hiring minimums.  It is difficult to gauge how accurate some of the posts on the forums are so I took this information knowing that fact.

One thing that did hold constant on these message boards was knowing somebody that was in the flight department or having a network to somebody related to the department.  This holds very true with most of the speakers we have listened to over the past few weeks.  Networking, networking, and more networking are the keys to success in the corporate world.

Bloggle fun.

I ran into an interesting site written by Jon Ostrower called FlightBlogger.  I found this in the information section of the blog: "FlightBlogger takes an in-depth look at matters relating to the global aerospace industry and is frequently a source for exclusive breaking news and reporting on matters of aircraft development and production.".  It is interesting to see another blog on a subject that was just covered in recent blogs.  The information contained in his blogs is interesting and follows other aircraft such as the Airbus A350 and the Russian built Superjets.  Should be interesting to follow.

I must be Dreaming.

The 787, Dreamliner, is Boeing's latest and most state of the art aircraft.  It is the first aircraft to be mainly composed of composites and durable plastics.  After three years of delays the first Dreamliner was just handed over to All Nippon Airways.  It is the aircraft that is projected to have fuel savings up to 20% which is critical for airline operators operating with such small profit margins.  It also has greater comforts than its predecessors such as windows that shade over replace normal plastic blinds, cabin pressures closer to sea-level, better seats, and many other perks awaiting travelers.

The origin of the 787 came from Boeing’s projection of air travel in the coming years.  Boeing is forecasting a growth from 3,640 twin aisle aircraft to 8,570 in 2030.  This coupled with airlines demands for more efficient and profitable aircraft is a large driving force behind Boeing to develop the 787.  It will be made into two variants, the -8 and -9, with seating ranging from around 200-300 people depending on cabin configuration.  It will boast a range greater than 8200 – 8500 nautical miles.  This longer range capability allows more point to point service as opposed to the hub-and-spoke model.  It also gives airlines the options of retiring some older less efficient aircraft of comparable size while potentially making a route much more profitable.

Boeing also did the manufacturing of this aircraft on a global scale.  Parts were brought in from all over the world on 4 specially designed Boeing Dreamlifters, which are modified 747-400’s (Photo).  The reason Boeing did this was to spread risk among its suppliers and to find the best engineering talent.  However, due to logistical problems, language barriers, and outsourcing of the outsourced work played a part in the 787 falling years behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget.  All of these smaller problems created a domino effect that kept pushing the aircraft delivery date back as cited in this article in business week.  Introducing so many variables to building an aircraft will be more likely to create delays, especially the first time anyone tries using this method.

Boeing also has ambitions to produce 10 aircraft per month by the end of 2013.  This will be done by two plants.  One factory in Everett, Washington will make seven Dreamliners per month and the other three in a new facility in Charleston South Carolina.  However the National Labor Review Board is in a legal battle with Boeing about the building of a non-union plant in South Carolina.  For more information please follow this link.

This new aircraft has not gone unnoticed by Boeing's rival Airbus.  Although the A380 has just taken to the skies Airbus has been developing the A350 to challenge the 787.  Aircraft manufacturers will listen to what their customers want and try to deliver an aircraft capable of making the airlines a profit.  The risk of doing something for the first time can stop a company from attempting a new cutting edge project.  The questions and risks in building the 787 (and the A380) could have a crippling financial effect on a company if the project is a failure.

Although Boeing isn’t at full scale production with the 787, it is finally here.  I am extremely excited in the advancements that Boeing has made with this aircraft and will be following in very carefully.  With Boeing having 821 orders from countries all over the globe many airlines are counting on Boeing to deliver with their product:  An aircraft that will fly more cost efficiently and provide more comfort to its passengers.